I was in tears last night; big time. Normally I'm not into HBO very much because thier programing has gotten so wierd. That and they play the same movies over and over until you've watched them enough to memorize them. But last night has made me change my mind, at least a little. I have seen some pretty good HBO specials before, but this one is the best I've seen in a long time. It's called "Autism: The Musical" and it is such a wonderful program. I promise you this much, if you watch it, you WILL fall in love!

As some of you may know, I have a 'sort-of' YF at my church who is autistic. I know his parents quite well; well, at least at church I know them quite well. And thier young son is someone whom I have had the honor of getting to know over the last 7 years as well. He is severly autistic, but is fairly funcional in that he can speak and express himself well enough. He does have a hard time with sudden outbursts and things like that, but he is such a loving and kind boy; he just loves people so much. He used to come up to me right before or after church and ask for a hug. He didn't have to ask twice, believe me. And some of you might remember Andy, one of our founding members here who passed away about four years ago. Well, that weekend when I went to church, that boy just walked right up to me and gave me this big hug all of a sudden. He was really quiet (which is odd for him) and looked directly into my eyes, like he sensed that I needed that hug. Any way, he is a very special boy and I love him very much. So when I saw that this program was on HBO, I wanted to watch it...I'm so glad I did and I can't wait till it comes on again. For once I'm glad HBO plays it's programs over and over again. I doubt I will get sick of this one. In fact, I hope it will come out on DVD so I can buy it.

This is one you really MUST watch, even if you've never been interested in autism before. Like I said, you will fall in love. I did. There are four beautiful autistic boys in this thing who are so special. One boy is Henry, a 10 year old boy with blond, floppy hair and a personality that will just win you over. Henry has what they call Asberger Syndrom. He is highly functional and gifted in a specific area; for Henry it's dinosaurs. He can tell you anything you would ever want to know about them but he has problems with social situations. He so reminded me of one of my nephews, by the way. I just adore him! Oh yea, he is also the son of Stephan Stills of Crosby, Stills, and Nash.

Then there is Wyatt. Wyatt is about 9 years old and his story just touched my heart. He wanted to talk about being bullied in the school he was attending and that just ripped me up. Good grief, who could ever be mean to such a beautiful and sensitive young boy? He has the biggest heart and the personality of a comedian..really! Again I fell deeply in love with him.

Oh gosh, then there is Adam. he plays the cello and is just adorable. His mom was active in the civil rights movement of the 60's and 70's and this has helped her to deal with having a son with autism. Adam is also fairly funcional but has some very real problems getting along socialy. He had no problem finding a way into my heart, though.

But the one boy who tore me up most of all was the son of the founder of the Miracle Project (the thing that this whole special is about). His name is Neal and his mom is Elaine Hall. Neal is what they would probably call a "low" funcioning autistic boy. He is unable to speak at all; he cannot form language. He has also had to battle a tendency to have big fits of anger and distress. There is one scene where he is playing with another boy and then suddenly pushes him to the ground. His mom rushes over and takes him in her arms and you can see that he knows what he did was bad and that he is really upset about it. He does things like that but dosen't mean to hurt anyone, he just gets his wires crossed and reacts in the wrong way. As the show progressed, it showed how he was progressing and how they found a way he could comunicate with his parents and others. He now uses a little computer thing called a "Say It Sam" that he can type in what he wants to say and it will speak for him. It's really neat! When he tells his mom that he loves her (I think for the first time) on that thing, she just looses it....so did I. And you can just see what a good and loving personality he has; it's in his eyes. His story alone is worth watching this special, I assure you.

The whole thing is about how this woman, Elaine Hall, decides to start a program where kids with autism can come together and create a play together. They write it collectively and practice it for months before they finally perform it in front of thier families and a live audience. But the play isn't the real goal of the project. The real goal is to get these boys and girls into a social situation where they can just be themselves and find ways to grow. It is a huge success, according to what I've seen and read, and it's expanding to comunities across the United States.

If you want to find out more about this HBO Special and the Miracle Project, and see some great clips from the special (you will LOVE the boys I mentioned!!!), go to www.hbo.com and search for either "Autism" or "Autism the Musical" and you will find it. You will really love it, believe me. OR..if the link I included works, use that. You will fall in love.

Chris



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